Are these fair prices?

[Joshua Lipe]

Hello everyone, I took my Explorer in to get checked out on Friday. I just recently became employed again and now have the money to improve my vehicle. So I got a qoute on some work and since I don't know much I'd thought I'd post the prices on here and get some feedback from people who do know. I took the vehicle in because I was hearing a thump when I went over bumps and it wasn't all the time, just some of the time and I was losing coolant very slowly. So here is what the mechanic qouted me:

Part Price
Both upper control arms w/ball joints $319.90
Both lower ball joints $169
Alignmnet $60
Front sway bar link pins $58
Bushings $28

Coolant resevoir tank $120
Coolant $23


Labor for all that was 5.4 hours for a labor price of $421.20.

Are these fair prices? Thanks for the help.

Josh

 

[toypaseo]

Front swaybar endlinks are a fairly easy. Pry the hardest part I ran into was removal of the old ones. In the end, cutting the old ones in half with a hacksaw, for removal, was the fastest.

I used Moog K700542 endlinks.

 

[toypaseo]

Here's a new $27.95 OEM coolant reservoir, if it is the one you are needing...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/EMPTY-NEW-O...ash=item2a725ce5c7:g:WREAAOSwzaJX-WF5&vxp=mtr

Here's a new $39.00 OEM one, with caps, if it is the one you are needing...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-GENUINE...ash=item1ec347b8b0:g:PxkAAOSwhQhYxvOR&vxp=mtr

 

[XLTrunner]

You sure you want to know what parts would cost if you bought them yourself? Here are the quality Moog brand that many of us use and recommend...purchased from Rockauto.com:

Moog #K8695T (lower ball joints - 2 req'd) @ $23.79/ea.
Moog #CK8708T (left upper control arm w/ball joint) @ $51.79
Moog #CK8710T (right upper control arm w/ball joint) @ $52.79
Moog #K700542 (sway bar pin & bushing kit - 2 req'd) @ $8.28/ea.

Delivered to my door (MN), total comes to just about $180...versus $576 they want to charge you. And as I said, these Moog parts aren't cheap Chinese junk...but, good quality parts. No doubt...if you mention this huge price difference, they'll tell you their parts are far superior quality Ford Motorcraft parts (total b.s.). Try to find someone who will work with you if you buy the parts and let them do the install if you don't have the ability to do it yourself.

On a positive note, the alignment cost is reasonable...as is the labor rate compared to what most shops charge in my area.

As suggested, do yourself a favor and buy your own coolant tank for far less money. They are pretty easy to replace with basic socket set and set of pliers to remove the small attached hoses. Perfect do-it-yourself job for the beginner. And, if you don't own any tools, the money you'll save will more than pay for any tools you may have to buy. Plus, you'll gain some confidence in taking on more difficult jobs to save you even more money down the line while building your inventory of tools. You don't need to be held hostage for every little repair that's bound to come your way if you spend some time learning about your vehicle.

 

[UtahX]

Summit Racing also has some very nice prices on parts. Buy your own parts if possible, some places will not use customer parts, and if they do they will not guarentee the work.

 

[koda2000]

As I do my own repairs (and purchase my owe parts where I find the best price for the quality I'm look for). I can't say whether that's a fair price with labor, but I can tell you about the cost of the parts...

Both upper control arms w/ball joints $319.90 (I just paid $72 for Moog)
Both lower ball joints $169 (I just paid $35)
Alignmnet $60 (good price and about typical)
Front sway bar link pins $58 (OMG Moog poly's links are <$20)
Bushings $28 (Probably about double what they cost IDK)
Coolant reservoir tank $120 (around $40-$45 for new OE tanks)
Coolant $23 (about right)

So about $260 to do these jobs yourself vs $778 for parts (including alignment) +$421 for labor on a '98 Explorer? Not worth it in my book. The cost of your repairs are about equal to the value of the vehicle. DYI and save about $1000.